Lubrication device



Aug. 20, 1940. R. H. wHlTELEY LUBRICATION DEVICE Filed Jan. s, 1958` 4 sheets-sheet 1 vxlll. I l w u 2 Aug. 20, 1940.

R. H. WHITELEY LUBRIGATION DEVICE Filed Jan. 3, 1935 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Aug. 20, 1940.

R. H.`wH1TE| EY LUBRICATION DEVICE 4 sheets-Sheet s Filed Jan. 3, 1938 Aug. 20, 1940. R. H. WHITELEY` LUBRICATION DEVICE Filed Jan. 3, 1938` 4V Sheets-Sheet 4 5y jl v 40 iure. 4 l This semi-solid lubricant presents the greatest diculty in the refilling or replenishing ofthe` Patented Aug. zo, 1940 UNITED STATES LURIcAfr-ION DEVICE Robert H. Whiteley, Oak Park, Ill., assignor to Randall Graphite Products Corporation, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware Application JanuaryS, 1938. Serial No. 183,021 v 6 Claims. (CL 18d- 65) The present invention relates to lubrication de- N t. vices, and is particularly concerned with lubrication devices for supplying bearings with relatively thick lubricant or for supplying the reservoir of a reservoir type self-lubricating bearing with lubricant of this kind.

The present devices are of p particular importance when used in connection with selflubricating bearings of the reservoir type, exem- 10 plified in my prior Patent No. 2,048,763, but the t l invention is also of importance in connection with the supply of lubricant to any bearingwhere the lubricant is relatively thick and where air binding is experienced. f l5 Considerable difculty has been experienced in the replenishing of lubricant in reservoirs of the self-lubricating bearings of the type disclosed in my prior patent, mentioned above, and this diiiculty` has been ascribed to air binding.

, Even when the oil cups of the prior art, which are used for this purpose, are secured directly into the reservoir, the lubricant does not descend into the reservoir as desired, with the devices of the l prior art, and the same result is experienced when oil pipe lines are used with an oil cup on the end of the oil pipe for'lling such reservoirs.

In order to determine the cause of this condition, I have made investigation, and have found that there is a point of maximum air pressure at the lower end of the cup,`4and after investigation and experimentation I have developed a-number of lubrication devices in the form `of oil cups, with which such reservoirs may bevery quickly filled with relatively thick lubricant.` The lubricant used is frequently a semi-solid lubricant, such as petroleum jelly, which melts at a predetermined temperature, in order that the self-lubrit eating bearing may be provided with a supply'` of lubricant as soon as the bearingfrises in temperareservoirs of my bearings, and it is of the utmost importance that the relling devices be so ar- 45 ranged that adequate lubrication is insured.

Unless the lubricant which is placed in the oil cup actually reaches the reservoir andcomes in contact with the porous carbon plugs which conduct lubricant from the reservoir to the bear-` 50 ing surface, bearing failuresrnay be experienced. It should be understood that the invention is of importance in connection with any kind of lubrit four sheets:

section,

When abearing of this type is providedwith an oil cup and the operator has filled the oil cup, it would naturally be assumed that the bearing is providedwith lubricant, and `therefore air binding inthe oil cup or reservoir must be positively 5 avoided; otherwise the operator willlthink that his bearing has adequate lubrication, when, in" fact, it has not. i ,l

One of the objects o-f the invention is the provision of improved methods of filling closed reserlL voirs for self-lubricating bearings, by means of which the operator may be assured that the lubricant reaches the bearing.

Another object isthe provision of anv improved form of filling device or oilcup for reservoirs or l5 for ,lubrication of bearings without reservoirs, by means of which air binding in the conduits for lubricant is eliminated.

Another object is the provision of lubrication devices in the form of oil cups which are adapted 20 to receive especially heavy or semi-solid lubricant and which are adapted to conduct the lubricant"` by gravity to the desired points without possibility of entrapped air 'in' the conduits preventing the flow of lubricant to its proper place. 25

l Another obj ect of the invention is the provision t.

, of improved lubrication devices of theclass de;`

scribed which are efl'icient, sturdy, capable of economical manufacture, and which, in fact, may

be manufactured by the addition of certain novel 30 parts to the oil cups of theprior art.

. Other objects and advantages of the inventionH will be apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawingsfin which similar characters of reference indicate similar parts 35 vthroughout the several views. y

Referring to the drawings, of which therear' Fig. 1 is a vertical elevational view in partial showing a self-lubricating bearing equipped withan oil cup or lubrication device` constructed according to `the invention. and" capable of carrying out the present methods.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary vertical sectional View, taken on a plane passing through the axisof the oil cup conduit and at right angles to the bearing.

, Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional View through the'- oil cup, taken on the plane of the line 3--3 of Fig.2.. .u v

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of a modication taken 50 at a point just below the covento show the c0117zr struction of the oil cup. t

q Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 2 of the modificationof Fig. 4. Y Fig. 6 is a similar View of another modification. 55

Fig. 'l is a vertical sectional view similar to Fig. 2 of the modification of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a top plan View with part of the cover in section, at a pointl just below the cover of the oil cup, showing another modification.

Fig. 9 is a vertical sectional view, taken on the axis of the oil cup, showing details of construction of the modification of Fig. 8.

Fig. 10 is a view-similar to Fig. 9 of another modification, which is similar to that o-f Fig. 9, except that the air vent emerges from a hole in the cover.

Fig. 11 is a View similar to Fig. 9 of another modification, in which the air vent emerges at the side of the oil cup.

Fig. 12 is a vertical sectional view of a bearing connected with an oil cup and an oil conduit, in which air binding might be experienced, except for the provision of the improved features which are'shown in section in Fig. 12, along a plane passing through the axis of the bearing and the axis of the upwardly extending oil pipe.

Fig. 13 is a fragmentary sectional View, taken on'` the plane of the line l3-l3 of Fig. 12, looking in the direction of the arrows. l

Fig. 14 is a horizontal sectional view, taken on the plane of the linel-lfl of Fig. 12.

Referringto Fig. 1, 23 indicates in its entirety a self-lubricating bearing of the pillow block type, which is described in-my prior patent, mentioned above, and which comprises a base mem ber 2l, an upperhalf 22 secured thereto by a pair of screw bolts 23.

The'two halves 2h22 are provided with a partially spherical socket 23, which receives the ball 25 that forms the outer part of a reservoir 26.

A reserve reservoir 2ly at the bottom holds a reserve supply of lubricant, and the bearing is indicated by the numeral 23, being provided with a multiplicity of porous carbon plugs 23, which conduct lubricant from the reservoir 26 to the bearing surface 30, which is in contact with `the shaft 3l: Y

Thereservoir is filled through a bore 32, which has ordinary pipe thread and is adapted to receive' the threaded end 33 of an oil cup,

'y which is indicated in its entirety by the'numeral The upper half of the housing 22 has an enlarged aperture35'about the pipe 33 of the oil cup 33 so as to permit a limited universal movement of the ball 25 within the two halves- 2|, 22 of the pillow block.

" 'Referring to Figs. 2 and 3, these views Vshow* in greater. detail the'improved `features of the oil vcup which is'used'Y in the combination with the bearing' 20 of Fig. 1, according to the present invention.M v"I'he oil cup` 3.4 comprises a 'substantially cylindrical body, having a cylindricalinner chamber "3l which communicates with an outlet bore 33 in a pair 'of laterally projecting parallel bearing lugs 40, 4I, which have apertures for receiving the hinge pin 42 which also passes through the f bearing lugsv 33, 44 of thev cover 45.

"The cover 35 is of suicient size to close the upper endy of the oil cup, and may have a down- "wardly extending flange fit, which embraces the A outer and upper edge ofthe oil cup, but preferably Ahaving Va v"clearance therewith.

In order to' prevent air binding at the lower vanges 60.

rpart of the oil cup or conduit 38, the present oil oil or semi-solid lubricant, is shorter than tne oil cup 33, so that there is a conduit at 33 between the lower walls of the oil cup and housing 41 and the housing ll is provided with a down- 15 wardly extending metal tube 50, which extends into the'conduit 38 but is spaced from the wall thereof.

Housing 56 preferably extends down into the reservoir 26 beyond the end 5l of the oil cup, and 20 there is an annular conduit between the tube 5I] and the inner wall of the pipe 36. v

4The housing 151 is so secured in the oil cu that it projects slightly below the edge of the oilfy cup, the upper edge of the oil cup beingin'dicated 25 by the line 52, so that the cover l5 engages the upper edge of the housing 34, but has a clearance at 53 between the cover and the edge of the oil cup wall 41. "l

rIhe cover is preferably provided with a heli- 30 cal spring which is coiled about the pivot pin-'42 and has one end 53 engaging the oil cup wallland the other end 55 engaging in a slot in the-cover, urging the cover into closed position with respect*I to the housing lll. Y

The housing 41 actually serves as a receptacle for the lubricant, but the annular space between the housing 4T and outer wall of oilv cup 34 Serves as a conduit for air, so that the entrappedlk air in the Vreservoir or in the `pipe33 Vor -in` the 40 lower part of the oil cup is released and '-may pass freely from points below the-oil supply-iin cup lll, to space above the oil. I find that with such a structure the tendency toward air bind." ing is wholly eliminated and the reservoir '23 re- 45 ceives by gravity the oil which is placed in the cup member lll, so that there is no dangerof lack of lubrication due to air binding. I 'Y Referring to Fig. Ll, this is another modicatioril -in which the construction of the oil cup 34 may 50 be exactly as described, butthe inner housing lmember, which takes the place ofthe-housing 41 of Fig.- 2, is of slightly different shape.` In this case the inner housing, which is indicated byll the numeral 56, is of substantially cylindrical 55 shape, but it is provided with a plurality, and preferably at least three, ,outwardlyY pressed ribs 51, which `span the-annular spacebetween the wall of the inner housing 55 and the outer walill 33. The ribs 5l preferablyhave outer partially 60 cylindrical surfaces 58 so that theinner housing 56 lits with a drive fit in the oil cup 34 in the position shown in Fig. 5. In this case it is un necessary to use the spacing wires 48, as the oili' receiving member or housing 56 is` itself provided with the pressed spacing ribs. The frictionbetween the surfaces 58 and the inner wall is sufficient so that the o-il receptacle 56 is held in the position of Fig` 5 anddoes not drop down into the oil cup. 'i

Referring to Figs. 6 and "I, thisis another modication, in which 'the oil receiving cup is desigf nated by the numeral 59, and 1in this case it-is provided with a plurality of radially fextenf'iingRS top and the other adjacent the bottom of the 1 cup member 59, the flanges having a close frictional engagement with the interior Wall of the oil cup 34, the member 59 is held in the position `of Fig. 7.

In this embodiment the upper end of the inner 'V'cup member is again located below the surface of the cover 45, which vents the air fromapoints .L below the oil to the space above the oil.

It will thus be observed that by means of an I inner `housing member the present invention may be, applied to existing oil cups, and, as a matter of fact, the inner housing becomes the cup which receivesthe oil, while the member which is used ,asan' oil cup in the devices of the prior art becomes an outer housing.

Referring to Fig. 8, this is a modication in which the oil cup 34 is of the same construction .as shown in Fig. '7. This modification, however,

lincludes a different type of air venting arrangement in `the form of a metal tube 69, which extends from a point 1U below the end 5l of the `conventional oil cup to a -point 1| slightly spaced i from the cover 45.

The lower end `'l0 of this tube 69 is preferably laterally bent, which tends to cause any lubricant which might run over it from closing the end of :the tube.v The tube 69 is supported by a plurality of spring arms in the form of a spider member 12, having a plurality of radially extending arms 13-16. Each of these arms may be provided with a downwardly turned flange member 11 that engages the wall of the oil cup 34 at one of the points 18. The spider 12 may have a centrally located aperture 19 for passing the tube 69 which is secured in place by solder 88 or other convenient fastening means.

In the modification shown in Fig, 10, the structure is similar to that of Fig. 9 except that the tube 69 is longer and extends to a point above the cover 45. The cover is provided with an aperture 8|, which is enlarged to permit the pivotal movement of the cover on or oif the end of the pipe 69.

In both the modifications of Figs. l0 and 9, care must be taken to keep the upper end of the tube 69 free of lubricant, the lubricant being placed in the oil cup 34 between the tube 69 and the outer wall thereof.

The operation of this embodiment is the same as those previously described, except that the air is vented through the pipe 69 at the middle of the lubricant, rather than the annular space between the inner and outer cups of Figs. 1 7.

Referring to Fig. 1l, this is another modification in which the oil cup 34 may be of the same structure except that it is provided with a groove 82 at the top of one side, preferably adjacent the pintle 42. The tube 69 in this case is laterally bent at 83 and extends diagonally upward from the middle of the pipe or conduit 38 to the point 84, where the pipe is again bent in a horizontal direction to fit into the groove 82. It is secured in the groove 82 with its lower end centered in the conduit 38 by means of the solder 85, or other convenient fastening means. The end 86 of the tube in this case is the point where the air is discharged, and this location for the air discharge conduit is advantageous because there is little danger of it being clogged with solid lubricant in the filling of the cup 34, as it is directed away from the front edge of the cup and protected by the cover 45.

Referring to Figs. 12-14, this is a modication in whichthe oil cup 34 is connected to the reser- 'voir 26 by means of a plurality of pipes, such as the vertically extending metal pipe 81, the elbow 88, horizontal pipe 89, elbow 90, and Vertical pipe or conduit 9|. Any of the air venting arrangements disclosed in Figs. 1-11 may be employed within the cup 34 of Fig. 12, but an additional arrangement is desirable to prevent airbinding "at the pipe 81. This takes the form of a strip of metal 92, which is of sufcient width, as shown in Fig. 13,` to span the inner diameter of the pipe 81, in which it is secured by a frictional fit.

The metal strip 92 extends from the point 93 `Well up in the elbow 88 to the point 94, down in the reservoir 26. Both ends may be semi-circular,

f and the end 93 is spaced from the inner 'left sur `in the cup 34. Neither the pipe 89 nor elbow 88 becomes so full that lubricant reaches the clear- `ance space 95 on the left side of the dividing strip 92 in Fig,f1:2, and thus that space or conduit 96 is maintained open for the venting of air from the reservoir 26 or from any elevation in the pipe 81.

Thegair passes from the conduit 96 through the clearance 95 into the upper half of the pipe 8,9, and thence over to the clearance conduit in the cup 34, which conduit extends down into the elbow 90. I have found that by means of these arrangements, solid or semi-solid lubricant of the type which I prefer to use in my self-lubricating bearings can be placed in the oil-receiving chamber of these oil cups, and there is a certainty that it will gravitate to the reservoir of the bearing. The air binding which occurred with the devices of the prior art, comprising ordinary oil cups without these arrangements, is wholly eliminated, and the lubrication of the bearing is assured when lubricant is properly placed in the oil cup. The danger of lack of lubrication which was caused by air binding of the devices of the prior art is wholly eliminated, and all of the diiiiculties of replenishing the oil in the reservoirs of my bearings are solved by these constructions.

While I have illustrated a preferred embodi` ment of my invention, many modifications may be made Without departing from the spirit of the invention, and I do not wish tol be limited to the `precise details of construction set forth, but desire to avail myself of all changes within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is:

1. An oil cup comprising an outer cup member communicating with a supporting conduit, and an inner cup member, said inner cup member being adapted to receive the lubricant, and having an oil discharge conduit located in said supporting conduit, said members and conduits being so arranged that there is an air vent conduit between them, said oil cup having a plurality of spacing members of narrow width in between said cup members and having a frictional engagement with said cup members to hold .thelin'ner cup'member and conduitin' spaced relay'ti'on tothe outer cup memberand supporting 1 conduit.

2. An oil'cup comprising an outer cup member communicating with a supporting conduit, and

aninner cup'mernber, said'finner cup member adapted to receive the lubricant, and having an oil'discharge conduit located in said supporting conduit, said members and conduits being so arranged that there-*is an air vent conduit between them, said inner cup member'being provided with a. plurality'of outwardly pressed ribs 'for engaging the inner Wall of said oil cup to form anr air discharge conduit betweenthe inner and outer cups. i f

,3; An oil 'cup comprising an outer cup lmem- "ber 'communicating with a supporting conduit,

and an inner cup member, said inner'Qupv member'adapted to receive the lubricant, [and having 'an' oil 'discharge conduit located in said supporting conduit, said members and conduits being so arranged that there is an air Vent conduit between them, said oil-receivingcup being provided with laterally extending lugs for engaging Vthe wall of the oil cup at spaced points to proouter cylindrical part of said container andr adapted to engage the walls of a standard oil cup having a discharge aperture, said container having a depending conduitadapted to extend `through and beyond the end of ythe discharge aperture of said oil cup.

points.

5. In an oil cup, the combination off'a 'reser- VoirV provided with aconnection for connection to a bearing to be lubricated, said connection having vaconduit extending therethrough,l and `an inner lubricant-receiving housing, said inner housing being provided with means for spacing it from the walls of said cup to form a conduit between said oil cup and said inner housing, said inner housing having a depending tubular conduit adapted to be spaced from the walls of the conduit in said connection and to extend beyond the end of said connection, whereby an air vent is provided outside of said inner container for preventing air binding, said spacing means comprising integral ribs formed on said inner container and engaging the walls of said oil cup.

6. In an oil cup, the combination of a reser- Voir provided with a connection for connection toa bearing to be lubricated, said connectionfhaving a conduit extending therethrough, and an inner lubricant-receiving housing, `said inner housing being provided with means for spacing it from the walls of said cup to form a conduit between said oil cup and said inner housing, saidg.'

inner housing having a depending tubular conduit adapted to be spaced from the Walls of the conduit in said connection and to extend beyond the end of said connection, whereby an air vent is provided outside of said inner container' for preventing air binding, said spacing means comprising a pair of radially extending flanges engaging the walls of said oil cup atspaced ROBERT H. WHITELEEY. 

